A Different kind of Feeling
by RedSilverfang
Summary: Hermione had to admit that Draco was a far cry different from the arrogant boy she knew as a kid. Draco gazed at her behind his bangs from across the Great Hall. **Dramione, Draco OOC, Rated T for possible lemons/smut, AU reviews/critiques are VERY welcome.** Thankies :3
1. The Beginning All over again

****Draco POV****

Draco gazed around the Great Hall in sadness tinged with wonder. Because of the war they had fought during their last year at the school, all of the Seventh years that had made it through the war alive were permitted to come back for a final year. The gift of being able to round up their schooling and get on with their careers was huge for most of the now Eighth years.

The wonder was due to the fact that he himself had made it through alive. The sadness was due to the fact that not everyone had made it, to name a few, Lavender Brown did not live through the ravaging of the beastly werewolf, Fenrir Grayback. Fred Weasley had been killed by an explosion. Nymphodora Lupin, Rumus's wife had passed, leaving their little one Teddy, without a mother. Colin Creevey had been struck by a killing curse out on the grounds. Dobby, his fathers previous house elf, had been killed by his aunt Bellatrix, while he was saving Harry Potter, the Weasel, and Grang-... Hermione, and the rest of _that_ lot. A burst of pain flared in his chest at the thought of his aunt, and a second, larger one at the thought of Harry. His aunt had been killed by the Weasels mother- Molly, was it?- and though it was the last thing ANYONE had expected to happen, Voldemort had prevailed. He-who-must-not-be-named was still at large, those left of the Order regrouping and mourning their dead. With the rest of the wizarding world too fearful of the Dark Lord and his minions to fight back, and the Order in shambles, his fellow witches and wizards either went subservient at His name or converted and became his followers. Though much had changed, it had been mere months since the death of the famed Chosen One, Harry Potter.

Disembarking from the train had been nostalgic for him. All other times he had left platform 9 3/4 his parents had been with him, but since the Dark Lord and his followers were still planning their next attack, he was stripped of the accompaniment of his parents. The staff of Hogwarts were given leeway and allowed to come back to work at the school only because they were thought to have been protecting Harry and not to be directly associated with the Order. Which come to think of it, was the only reason half of the staff were even alive still. He grimaced as thoughts of the war came flooding back to him. He wished dearly that things had gone another way, but things happen, and there is no way you can go back and fix them. He glanced down at his class schedule, noting that he had Defense, Advanced Flying, lunch, Transfiguration, and Potions, with Quidditch practice every other day.

He was shaken from his reverie by Blaise tapping his arm and saying something. "What?" He snapped. Blaise looked affronted, "Jeeze mate, calm down. You were just staring at Hermione, and she noticed." Draco glanced towards the Gryffindor table and sure enough, the girl in question was studying him carefully. He ran his hand through his hair nervously and turned away to talk to Blaise, trying to forget about her. Not really paying attention to what he was saying, he let his mind wander again and his gaze drifted back to Hermione. Only to find her still watching him. Still watching.

Why the hell is she staring at me? Do I have something on my face? Is there food in my teeth? Hermione was staring at him and it was quite unnerving. She held eye contact for a few more seconds, flushed lightly, and then glanced away. Draco could have sworn he saw something other than distaste flicker in her eyes before she looked away and struck up a conversation with Weasley, but it was there and gone so fast that there was no way of telling for sure. Still watching her, he wondered what all of what had just occurred between them was. Just then he heard Minerva McGonagall begin to speak. Pushing Hermione from his mind, he turned towards the front of the Great Hall and listened as their Headmistress welcomed them all back to another year at Hogwarts.

Hermione looked around the hall, saddened by the sight that confronted her. Out of the large group of students that had been at Harry's side only a small few remained. Of even the students who had sided with the Dark Lord, still only a few lived. Her best friend was dead, and her boyfriend had become her ex-boyfriend due to the stress of the war and his brother Freddie's death. Then, learning of Lavender Brown's death had been the clincher. There was no going back. Plus, she had seen from the way Ron had cradled Lavender's broken body and sobbed after the incident, that he had still been in love with her. So, to save him from the guilt of breaking it off himself, Hermione broke it off for him, saying he needed time to mourn and be with his family and that she understood. She regretted doing it, even though she knew it was the right thing to do. A part of her would always be Ron's, he was her first love after all. Luckily, he was able to come back again this year, he now sat to her right. But he wasn't the same. She looked to her right and bumped her shoulder gently into Ron's smiling faintly at him when he glanced up at her slowly. He twitched his mouth in what she thought was supposed to be a smile, and then looked back down at the table.

Looking away from him at last she continued her survey of the hall of students when she noticed that one student in particular seemed to be doing the same thing. Draco. _Since when has he stopped being Malfoy and become Draco, _she thought to herself. Calling him Draco seemed intimate, compared to their past experiences.

She watched as Blaise Zabini tapped him on the arm and said something to him, curious of what was being said. All of a sudden, his gaze snapped up to meet with hers and he ran his hand through his hair. He hurriedly glanced away and resumed speaking with Zabini. Continuing to study him, she took in the fact that though he looked much older and weathered, he was quite handsome, even dashing. She looked at his body, noting how he had become muscled and toned through the years and wondered why she had never appreciated his beauty before. _It's hard to appreciate someones total gorgeousness when they are constantly calling you "mudblood", _she reminded herself. Letting her eyes rove back to his face, she realized he had seen her staring. She gazed across the hall into those grey orbs for a few more breif seconds and then, flushing bright pink, she turned away and began speaking to Ron. "So what are your classes for this year, Ron?" "I dunno, let me check," he replied, "Okay, so I have Defense Against the Dark Arts first, then I have a break, then lunch, then Transfiguration, and then Potions." Hermione broke into a smile, "Fantastic, so we have all classes but flying together..." She finished lamely. "I have Defense, then Advanced Flying, lunch, then Transfiguration, and Potions."

Just as she had finished, Hermione heard Headmistress McGonagall begin to speak, her voice amplified by the Sonorus charm so as to be heard throughout the Great Hall. "Hello again, students. We of the faculty are happy to invite you all back to another year at Hogwarts. We want to give our oldest students a warm welcome back. Due to the war at the end of last year, those of the seventh year classes did not get to finish out the classes needed to begin a career. Thus we have made an Eighth year class."

As the students murmered and shuffled about at the revelation, the great hall doors were thrown open with a boom. The groundskeeper, Hagrid, strode in with the first years followed by Professor Snape, Oliver Wood, and a figure under a dark travelling cloak. More shuffling and murmuring arose as most of the students followed the movements of the cloaked figure. Others watched as Hagrid led in the newest members of the school. The youngsters all looked around nervously as they followed the big man up to the long table at the head of the hall. Like every time before, there was a short stool with a battered old hat set upon it.

McGonagall rose again at the staff table. "Before we commence with the Sorting, I would like to introduce our faculty this year. Hagrid, and Professors Binns, Sprout, and Flitwick will all have Care of magical Creatures, History of magic, Herbology, and Charms, respectively and as normal." Each stood and bowed as their name and class was called, and then sat back down. "However, due to the..." here, the headmistress seemed to be searching for the right words, "lack of teachers willing to be here, we have had need of some new hires and shuffling of classes. Professor Slughorn will be your potions master this year, with Professor Snape as your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher." Both stood up at their seats and bowed before the students.

She continued with her speech stating each of the teachers and their class, and as she said each they did as the professors before had done. "Firenze will teach Astronomy, and Madam Hooch will do the first years Flying training. If you have anything that ails you or have questions regarding the library, see Madam Pomfrey for your illnesses, and Madam Pince for your books. And Argus Filch is back as Caretaker." There was much rustling at the changes in teachers and classes, but it was to be expected. The veteran students waited with bated breath to see what Oliver Wood was there for. As well as the hooded figure, who had still refrained from revealing themself. "Now students, we will be continuing the Quidditch matches. Oliver Wood, former Captain and Keeper for Gryffindor house, has come back as a coach, and despite his former alleigance to Gryffindor, will hold no favorites of houses." Everyone broke into loud cheers, they were all grateful to have something to be happy about, and something to take the edge off. No one noticed that after this revelation and in all the hubbub the hooded figure had taken their rode off and was waiting to the side. When everyone quieted down, the Headmistress continued as if she had never been interrupted. She glanced down to the end of the table where the now revealed guest was standing, "And as you can see we have a new teacher here. He will be teaching Advanced Flying." At this everyone looked down to the end of the table. Hermione looked over and saw who it was and nudged Ron, who shook himself out of his reverie and glanced up along with everyone else. His eyes got wide and his mouth dropped open. Finally his brain kicked in, trying to process who he was seeing as a teacher the school.

**Heh, so who do you all think it is going to be? who do oyu think is the mystery teacher? give me your guesses on who it is and something you would like to be put into the story, the person who gets it right will have their idea incorporated :)**


	2. The Reunion

**A/N Oh my goddess! :3 I'm all kinds of giddy, 200+ visits?! Thank you so much everyone, and dont forget to review for me and tell me what you think about the plot! I only had two guesses and one of them was correct.**

**Thank you for the reviews**

**Leviooooosa**

**MarianasTrencher01**

**and PotterHeadIndie (Congrats on Guessing correctly by the way, you will show up in the next chapter :3)**

***Hermione POV***

Hermione gasped as Ron jumped up next to her, staring at the staff table as if his very life depended on it. His mouth opened and closed for a few seconds like a fish's before a single strangled sounding word escaped his lips. "Charlie?" An incredulous look crossed his face and he again spoke the name, this time hollering it across the hall. "Charlie?!" Charlie turned his head and smiled at Ron, who broke into a run, heading for the staff table. Bothers met in a clash of bodies and grappling arms, trying to hold onto one another. Ron sobbed into his older brothers arms, paying no attention the the rest of the students around them.

_Charlie Weasley was the Advanced Flying teacher?! Wait, Charlie Weasley is ALIVE?!_ Hermione was both dumbfounded and relieved. She rounded the table and sat next to Ginny taking the girl into her arms. She had pretty much lost three people during that war. Harry, her boyfriend; and Fred and Charlie her older brothers. Though now that Charlie was apparently very much alive and kicking, she was still having trouble processing this new information. During the war, no one had been able to find Charlie's body among the wreckage of the school nor anywhere on the grounds. It had been as if he had just up and disappeared. When no one had accounted for him and no one had heard from him in the off chance that he was still alive, the family had assumed him dead. They had held a small funeral for him alongside Fred's, but as there was no body for him, all they had was words to say. It was a relief to see that the second eldest Weasley was indeed still alive.

Hermione continued to hold Ginny and comfort her, but the girl was in shock. Hermione glanced down at her friend but she was just staring glassy eyed at her older brother. Finally, as if something had clicked, awareness shot through her gaze and she let out a noise between an animal in pain and a scream. Jerking from Hermione's arms, Ginny raced up to the head table where her brothers were, screaming Charlie's name, half crying and half laughing. She flung herself into the two and clung to them sobbing. Hermione watched as the three slowly lowered to the floor, holding onto each other in their tearful and joyous reunion.

McGonagall motioned to Professor Snape and he went to where the three were bunched and whispered something in Charlie's ear. Charlie got up, picking up his little sister bridal style and carrying her out through a door leading out of the hall. Hesitating on the threshold, Ron turned and glanced at me questioningly. I smiled and nodded, assuring him that it was real. He smiled the first genuine smile I had seen from him in ages and followed Charlie out of the hall. The door shut with a small click, blocking any more view Hermione might have had of her friends. McGonagall cleared her throat and continued on to the sorting. Unusually, Hermione paid no attention to the rest of the announcements she was so engrossed in her own thoughts.

***Draco POV***

Draco gazed at the staff table in disbelief. Not only did he have to deal with the Weasel and Weaselette on a daily basis, but now he had to deal with one more of their brood? He inwardly groaned and cursed his need to show Hermione he had changed, even if there was a possibility that she didn't feel the same for him. The least he could do was be friendly. _For Hermione_, He thought.

A disturbance broke out over at the Gryffindor table, and Draco glanced over to see what was the matter. Weasley had jumped up and shouted his brothers name, then was sprinting up to the table as though feindfyre was on the ground behind him. The two embraced almost violently and by that time the younger was crying hard, and holding on to the older like a life preserver. He looked back to the Gryffindor table to see a shocked expression on Hermiones face as she gathered the Weaselette into her arms and held her. The girl looked like she was in shock and was staring up at the staff table not moving. All of a sudden Ginny let out a shout and began racing towards the staff table, plowing into her brothers and sobbing. The three collapsed and continued hugging.

McGonagall motioned to Professor Snape to escort them somewhere more private to continue their reunion. Draco watched with interest as his favorite teacher bent down and whispered in the Weasleys ear. He watched as Charlie -_apparently that is his name_ he thought to himself- nodded and stood, carrying the Weaslette. They followed him out of the Great Hall and into a side room. Draco was amazed. _Since when was Severus Snape anything but... well, Severus Snape?_ Seeing him react with the Weasleys that way had thrown Draco off a bit. The click of the door shutting could be heard throughout the silent hall. The headmistress then cleared her throat and began speaking again. Draco glanced over at the Gryffindors to see Hermione staring at the table, seemingly lost in thought. He was brought back to attention by the Headmistress clearing her throat.

"Now, as we do at the start of every year, we will begin with the sorting." She walked over to the stool with the old battered hat perched on it and picked up the piece of parchment that was lying next to it. The hat burst into the usual song but added a new bit at the end, surprising everyone: "Heed these words, once all is done, you will find allies where there were none. Green and Red, they'll shine together, changing the fate of the two forever. "

After this the hat went silent and there was not a sound to be heard in the hall. Draco wondered what it could mean for them this year. He laughed to himself. _At least this one didnt sound as damning as other additions to the hats' song usually did._ The silence was interrupted by the almost harsh sound of parchment crackling. McGonagall had unfurled the scroll of parchment and began reading off the first of the names on the long list.

"Burton, Annabel." Almost directly after placing it on her head the hat screeched, "GRYFFINDOR!"

"Davies, Allanna." A small girl with chestnut hair pushed through the first years trying to make her way to the front of the crowd. Draco saw that she was almost through the crowd when a boy at the front with a head full of black locks stuck out his foot. Not seeing the danger, she forged on, only to fall flat on her face with the boy snickering behind her. A blonde boy standing next to her helped her up and shot glares at the offender. Shakily, she looked up at him and nodded her thanks, her face infused a very bright shade of red. Allanna then looked from his face to that of the Headmistresses, but saw no indication that the woman had seen what the raven-haired boy had done.

McGonagall urged her forward, "Come quickly, dear, we haven't all day." She trudged up to the stool and the hat was placed upon her head and began speaking to her. "Bright... yes, but very shy, much potential for intelligence though... hmmmm... your determination could put you in any of the houses but I think it will be.." she held her breath and awaited the verdict, "RAVENCLAW!" The Ravenclaw table burst into loud, rapturous applause. Taking the hat off, Allanna stood up and grinned at her housemates before walking to them, all traces of embarrassment from earlier gone.

"Ghallager, Tobias." The Blonde boy who had helped the Ravenclaw girl after she had been tripped walked calmly up to the sorting hat. He glanced towards the hall of students and sat upon the stool. The hat touched his head and was there for some time. Finally it bellowed it's decision, "Ravenclaw!" Tobias looked over at his house and grinned as he saw Allanna smiling shyly at him. He practically skipped over to the table and plopped himself down next to her. Draco chuckled. Puppy love was kind of adorable, he had to admit.

Names kept being called and hopeful witches and wizards continued to be sorted into their houses. It went on until Draco heard another name and something about the name sparked his memory.

"O'Shea, Gabriel." He looked up in time to see the dark haired boy that had tripped Allanna saunter up to the stool. The hat was placed upon his head and within seconds you could hear the echoes of "Slytherin!" fading away. A few more names were called and each house greeted their new arrivals until the last name was called. Once the first years had all settled into their seats and finished introductions, McGonagall called attention to the front of the hall once more.

"So, as you all know, classes shall be held as usual this year, but we might have an occasional," here she paused and a look of utter disgust filled her face for the tiniest of moments before continuing, "visitor from the Ministry and their allies. Just to make sure that we, as teachers, are doing our job." She scowled a bit at the last before finishing her speech. "Now that the important things are out of the way, enjoy the feast and welcome to Hogwarts. To the veterans welcome back." She beamed at the students and waved her hand signalling to the elves below, and causing all the platters on the tables filling with food and the tankards filling with drink. "Eat." She said simply, and sat down at her own place.

**Sorry it has taken so long to update :/ been nuts here in Portland. I will try to update more regularly.. thank you guys, please give me reviews on what you think! :D**


End file.
